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Henri de Gondi
Henry of Gondy '(French: Henri de Gondi; 2nd March 1572 - Present) was a Grandelumierian ecclesiastic, the Bishop of Paris, a title conferred upon him in 1597 at the age of 26 before his ordination to the priesthood. The ''Siege de Paris, ''one of the most populous and politically strategic dioceses in France, was inherited from Henri's uncle, the Cardinal de Retz, another important figure in the era of French unrest between political Catholicism and Protestantism. The young bishop belonged to the House of Gondy (or alternatively Gondi), one of the great Grandelumierian families competing and struggling for power in one of the darkest periods of French history in which Protestant and Catholic forces fought for control for the crown of an immense empire. ''La Maison de Gondi, ''although an ardently Catholic house, ''found its strategy in being among one of the proponents of religious tolerance for the loud and powerful French Calvinist minority. '' '' An important figure in the late Counter-Reformation period of French history, Gondi, alongside a number of important Catholic ecclesiastical reformers, defended the Roman Catholic Church from the approaching Calvinist threat whose leaders sought to do away with the Latin Church through aggressive political force and intrigue. Gondi, although historical records denoting his extreme piety, found himself taking a position of religious tolerance, yet also containing the threat of political Protestantism, contrary to other individuals in camp of the Roman Papacy who supported the ardently anti-Protestant Catholic League. Outside of the political sphere in hoping to create sustainable peace for the divided Empire of Grandelumiere, Henri found his reputation as an academic; a renowned student of the newly created Gregorian Pontifical University, administered by members of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). Gondi was a pupil of the great Robert Bellarmine, a professor of theology at the university and later rector in 1592. His skills in rhetoric and diplomacy were instrumental in defending the Catholic faith against Protestant threat. He wrote the treatise ''Quaestio Sponsa Christi ''where he defended the role of the Church as being untied with Christ. As well as having a profound grasp on systematic theology and Christology, Gondi as well earned his Doctorate in Canon and Civil Law; his proficiency was demonstrated in continuing to implement reforms made at the Ecumenical Council of Trent which occurred in the later decades of the 16th century. His ''Defensio Tridentinæ Fidei Catholicæ ''sought to defend the rulings of the Tridentine Council, although this publication didn't receive as much scholastic attention as his other and more well known treatise. His personal piety was unquestioned according to accounts from the annals of records from the House of Gondi; wealth was diverged from his person income to fund the establishment of orphanages, schools, churches, and impoverished nobles. No evidence has been discovered by historians that indicate that Gondi was untrue to his promises towards poverty, chastity, and obedience. Despite living at the court of the Grandelumerian Emperor, Gondi sought to avoid excessive luxury and would deliver harsh penances unto himself for any supposed transgression. By Gondi's own personal accounts in personal diaries, the bishop would flagellate himself to, "''shun my human nature; for because we have lost our original state of happiness whence the first sin occurred." ''His views on religious tolerance for Protestant Christians reflected his piety: he preferred mercy and clemency instead of mass persecutions and burnings, albeit, the bulk of Protestant populations found itself situated more prominently in Western France. Biography '''Birth At the time of Henri de Gondi's birth, the House of Gondi found itself in an exulted position within the court of Emperor Charles IX & I. Henri's father, Albert de Gondi occupied a number of courtly posts in Emperor Charles's court, including Valet de Chambre and Master of Wardrobe to Charles. Albert was created the Marquis de Belle-Ile in 1573 and later the Duke of Retz in 1581. Already holding extensive properties and lands through his fiefs, Albert was created a Marshal of Grandelumiere. The family held extensive posts under the de facto ''rule of Catherine de Medici: Albert was a close confidant of the Empress, a sitting member of her council at the time of the Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacre, while Henri's mother, Claude Catherine de Clermont, was the Governess to the Children of Grandelumiere. Henri's uncle, a Pierre de Gondi, occupied the seat of the Bishop of Paris; his service to the church was symbolized by his red Cardinal's galero, obtained in 1587. The Cardinal de Retz, similarly to his brother and sister-in-law, found great favour with the Regent Empress. By the time of Henri's birth, the couple had already produced a plentiful number of children that would allow security to their assets; Henri was in fact the sixth child of Albert and Claude Catherine de Gondi yet his birth was delivered with the same pomp and circumstance as any child would be, born to such prestige. The babe was born within the great Castle of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, several kilometers outside the city of Paris in the chambers of his family. '''Baptism' It was typical for Catholic French children to be baptized shortly after their fifth birthday unless the child's life be in danger of death. The toddler Henri was not a sickly child despite the rampant diseases that ran fluid throughout Paris and sometimes found themselves crept into the confines of the royal palaces. Henri was baptized on 2nd November, 1577 on All Saints Day. His godparents were Empress Catherine de' Medici who was stood in proxy by his mother, Claude Catherinel and; Cardinal de Retz, the child's uncle. The baptism occurred at the court chapel at the Chateau of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, with the ceremony being preformed by the Grand Almoner, Jacques Amyot, the Bishop of Auxerre. Infancy Adolescence and Education Bishop of Paris Works Ancestry Titles, Styles, and Orders